EconMin Ivan: Dragomiresti to host the NATO Ammunition Centre of Excellence for the whole of Europe

Economy Minister Bogdan Ivan, while on a visit to Dambovita County on Tuesday, said that Dragomiresti will host the NATO Ammunition Centre of Excellence for the whole of Europe, underlining the importance of such a strategic investment.'The most important point of our visit is the fact that here, in Dragomiresti, the NATO Ammunition Centre of Excellence for the whole of Europe will be established. What does that mean? It means that two weeks ago, based on an agreement between the Romanian state and the U.S. government, we signed - after many technical and political negotiations - a letter of request from Romania, which involves attracting 220 million dollars through a highly advantageous loan from U.S. funds, and bringing U.S. technology in a partnership with General Dynamics, here in Romania, to produce 120mm and 155mm NATO-compatible ammunition for the Romanian Army and for the entire European Union. This means that all ammunition for the Abrams tank, and all ammunition for the K9, will be produced in Romania, and it will be the only production facility of its kind in the European Union. It is a major investment, a strategic investment that marks the strengthening of our partnership with the United States and its new administration,' the minister said.The official emphasised that the main interest of the Government is to invest in production capacities within Romanian territory to cover as much of the value chain as possible domestically.'It is important to bring technologies from other countries, and this is one of the reasons why we are here today, but it is also very important to have fair partnerships that ensure our capacity, in an emergency situation - where certain supply chains might be delayed or even completely interrupted - to source as much as possible from Romanian soil. From this point of view, we have five major projects for this year: the powder plant, the 155mm line, the 120mm line, RDX and TNT production in Fagaras, plus drones at Carfil Brasov, and the licence at IAR Ghimbav which we want to obtain from Airbus for the H215 helicopter. Taken together, these projects show that the 2025 budget allocation by the Ministry of Economy for production capacities is 300% higher than in 2024 - three times more, at this initial stage. Just here in Dragomiresti, we have a project for a 155mm line worth 30 million lei, which must be implemented by the end of the year,' Bogdan Ivan explained.He highlighted the importance of successful partnerships, pointing out that Romania has the capabilities, workforce and technology to become a net exporter on the international market.'And wherever we have successful partnerships, such as the NATO Ammunition Centre of Excellence in Romania, in collaboration with the U.S., we will continue to develop them, because we are interested in bringing the latest global technologies to Romania, and furthermore, in implementing them. And if we are talking about the K9, which will be produced not far from here, the Abrams tanks, and the entire supply chain, I can say that Romania, through this strategic project developing in Dragomiresti, will gradually be able to cover a large part of all NATO-calibre ammunition needs, both for its own interests and especially for the interests of neighbouring countries. We are no longer operating under the old paradigm of producing only for ourselves and waiting for a contract every now and then. No, we see it as a business, as an extremely important economic development for our production capacity, and Romania, in this position, has the means, people and technology to become a net exporter on the international market,' he said."The defense industry is starting, hard, but it is starting, we see these steps being taken", was the conclusion of Minister Bogdan-Gruia Ivan, at the end of the visit to Dambovita County.He said that these enterprises must capitalize on the advantage of the geographical proximity to Ukraine."I want us to be, as we have been, transparent. At the moment, Automecanica Moreni is not going through the best period. It was taken over seven months ago by the new manager with some very large losses (...). I am satisfied with the progress made by the current management (...). We can be very competitive, thanks also to the infrastructure we have in terms of mechanical plants and thanks to the geographical proximity to Ukraine, the maintenance and repair area, where Moreni will have a very important place", Minister Bogdan-Gruia Ivan said at Automecanica Moreni.Developed after the 2000s at Automecanica Moreni, the Romanian armored amphibious transporter SAUR 2 has remained at the prototype level."SAUR 2, besides looking very good, has very good technical parameters and is competitive on the international market. I believe it will be a very good product for export, and besides the Romanian Army, it will be able to be competitive on the international market as well," said Minister Bogdan-Gruia Ivan.The official highlighted Romania's advantages in terms of developing the defense industry and the fact that money can be accessed in this regard."I want Romania, which has an extremely important geostrategic position, especially in the context of the armed conflict on the border, to be the ones who represent, together with Poland, the main area of assistance and reconstruction for Ukraine, on the one hand, and on the other hand, this money that we can access from the SAFE mechanism with a 10-year grace period, with repayment in 40 years, I want it to reach the Romanian economy", Minister Bogdan-Gruia Ivan also said.At Automecanica Moreni, a plant established in 1968, there are now 288 employees with an average age of 54. In recent years, the plant has also switched to civilian production. The director of Automecanica Moreni, Alexandru Oprea, said that the plant is currently in negotiations with an Asian partner for the delivery of carriers.  (Photo:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1_Abrams)